Key Question: How does financial wealth define one’s social status in Korea?
cars
area, house
clothes
memberships
people you mingle with
education.
“The art is not in making money, but in keeping it” Preface: How can we ever define one’s social status? Is money one of them? In this paper, I will discuss how one’s numerical growth has contributed to one’s social status. As time goes on, the world becomes competitive mostly through money. To remain competitive, Koreans have invested a lot of money in themselves. Such as apartments, education, and also expensive cars. Now this competition has become fierce, not only is the competition driving up the housing prices, but also getting a higher education has become almost impossible for the poor. In the past, government workers, teachers were respected at some degree. However, now those people are not respected as much as they used to be. In this capitalist country, money has become invaluable and will help you climb the social chain. This topic is important to me because I always loved subjects with Korean economy in it. When I was young I used to type in LG vs Samsung and I would find out which companies make a better pay. I chose this topic to emphasize how strong Korea is in economy, but also how superficially competitive they can get when it comes to financial social status.
Introduction to Genre #1: Genre #1 was a research paper in order to discuss my topic in depth. I think this genre is the most important genre of all because it talks about the topic in detail and supports the topic with lot of figures and data. First it talks about the booming economy of Korea and how it all started. Secondly, it tells the reader about the strict parents in Korea overly emphasizing on children’s education. Furthermore, the number of imported or luxury cars has drastically increased. So as you can see in this paper, competition among Koreans are getting stricter and tighter.
Genre #1 It is undeniable that we all want to create wealth and have a higher social status. Having a lot of money does not mean that you belong to the higher social network in many countries. However, in Korea this has become a major problem, in Korean society, the higher wealth chain you belong to, means that you belong in a higher chain in the society. It is apparent that financial wealth of a person can define ones social status in Korea.
Many Koreans have gained higher social status through the accumulation of wealth, during rapid economic growth. Most notable group who quickly gained higher social status through wealth were farmers. Most of farmers took advantage of the economic boom. During the 1960s to early 1970s, the vast land of Gangnam in Seoul now considered downtown of Seoul, was mostly consisted of farming lands. Farmers were low classed people who had difficult time meeting their ends meet(Ratnikas). Worse yet they envied people with higher social status, such as teachers, businessmen, and common salary workers. It wasn’t the seed they planted that made them to climb the social ladder, it was the booming real estate. During 1980’s Gangnam became the hottest spot to invest in(Ratnikas). Many high rise buildings were built and many people were flocking to the area. Their land price all of sudden increased exponentially and considered low classed people became financially secured and some ended up rich. Farmers who once were poor, uneducated, and disrespected now could afford to buy nice apartments, luxury cars, and even private education. In other words, they were able to build a strong foundation of acquiring higher social status.
Now through these economic booms, finally Korea met the time of the 21st century. Many Koreans who became rich over night did not obtain a higher social status, only through wealth. It was their dedication and effort to educate their offspring to help them lead a better life.(Education forum) Many Korean parents are known for zeal for education so that their children can climb the higher part of the social ladder(Education forum).However, without sufficient fund you can not give top quality education to your children. Most of Korean parents spend their money heavily on their children’s education. In Korea, household spending on private education and tutoring accounted for 34.1 percent of the total household budget last year, up from 33.7 percent in 2003 and 32 percent in 2002, the Bank of Korea has found(Lee). Then how can the poor house holds have their children educated. This translates to the notion that people who are richer will get richer and the poor will have a more difficult time becoming richer. Therefore, without having enough money you are less likely to get a higher education and to obtain a higher social status.
Like every other countries, cars has shown to symbolize one’s social status in Korea. In 1960s and 70s owning any car, either domestic or imported meant that you belong to the higher social chain.(Pence) Thanks to the rapid economic development, the middle class were able to have a car in 1980s. During 1990s the competition for showing off their social status got even fiercer. Some privileged showed their social status through buying imported cars, such as Mercedez, BMW, etc.(Pence) The sales of imported cars grew gradually in early 2000s. For instance, cars such as Audi weren’t widely known in Korea back then, and was also called the “Olympic car,” because of its logo. However, now in Korea Audi is 2nd most sold cars, running up to 541 cars per month.(Pence) However, cars in Korea cost 2 to 3 times the amount in America, cars which costs up to $50,000 in America can easily cost up to $100,000 or more. This proves that Koreans are willing to change or trade up to acquire a higher social status. But, cars aren’t the only sources that define one’s social status, Koreans value deeply which region they live in. Koreans usually envy those people living in Gangnam areas, and they want to move in that region for their child’s education and most importantly to show that you also fit in to that social bracket. Therefore, every year Koreans, usually Ajumas(moms, mature Korean female, married women) battle for the specific region in Seoul. This had a real estate market to sky rocket in early 2000s up to now.
(1) "Education Forum Hot Topic #25 Private after-school tuition - a big growth industry." Education Forum Home Page. 5 Oct. 2009 <http://www.educationforum.org
(2) Pence , Gregory . " Growth Continues in Import Car Sales." Seoul times . 5 Oct. 2009 <theseoultimes.com/ST/?url=/ST/db/read.php?idx=3010 >.
Introduction to Genre #2: In Genre #2, it helped me to elaborate on my topic in a different way. Doing this topic allowed me to realize how ego-centric we became. I used this Genre to make fun of those selfish rich people as a parody in a newspaper format. It also talks about a poor little student that has to go through rigorous amounts of extra academic school time. I used this example because it demonstrates the lifestyle of majority of Korean students in the 21st century. Proposal for Genre #2:
For Genre #2 I want to do a Journal entry or a diary to explain the daily luxury lives of Gangnam people. Also, for backup Genre #2, I think I might make a news paper article concerning this topic, by putting all the sources together and writing in my own words, a news paper article. However, I am most likely to stick with the Newspaper.
Genre #2
For this Genre I have decided to do a
Newspaper article relating to my Topic.
It is composed of 785 words. Introduction to Genre #3
In Genre #3, I wanted to really open my imagination and think how I can deliver my message to the readers in a more technical way, and I thought what could be easier than making a movie about this topic. However, making just a movie won't make the readers really understand the topic, so I made an interview video of real people, speaking the truths. I also asked a real Korean american pedestrian to help me out with the interview and it was a grand success. My friends also helped me out to really emphasize the details in the video. I liked this Genre the most, because I could really take over and make something with my own imaginations and my own ideas.
Genre #3 proposal
For Genre #3, I have decided to conduct interviews regarding the relations between money and social status. I have noticed this topic can't be better be explained by anyone other than the Koreans themselves, so I am going to roam around the streets and ask people, and also ask close Korean relatives or friends for information. I think the interview will give a better understanding to the readers, because this topic is concerned with real life situations.
Epilogue:
1. What I have learned from this project:
The main thing I have learned from this project is that people in Korea are active everyday to improve the economic boom is the global issues today. And also Korea is in top 5 in the world's leading economic countries.
2. How my perspective have changed on my topic?
My perspective have not changed about my topic, I still view my topic exactly the same as I did when I started this project, but one perspective that I have changed on my topic is that not only Korea use financial wealth to define social status. Most east asian countries are like that.
3. What I hope people might have learned by reading my project:
I hope people realize how Koreans have suffered a lot through history by colonization, and isolation from the world. However, Korea stood up and in less than 40 years, improved itself to be the world's leading economic countries.
Money is Reputation
Key Question: How does financial wealth define one’s social status in Korea?“The art is not in making money, but in keeping it”
Preface:
How can we ever define one’s social status? Is money one of them? In this paper, I will discuss how one’s numerical growth has contributed to one’s social status. As time goes on, the world becomes competitive mostly through money. To remain competitive, Koreans have invested a lot of money in themselves. Such as apartments, education, and also expensive cars. Now this competition has become fierce, not only is the competition driving up the housing prices, but also getting a higher education has become almost impossible for the poor. In the past, government workers, teachers were respected at some degree. However, now those people are not respected as much as they used to be. In this capitalist country, money has become invaluable and will help you climb the social chain. This topic is important to me because I always loved subjects with Korean economy in it. When I was young I used to type in LG vs Samsung and I would find out which companies make a better pay. I chose this topic to emphasize how strong Korea is in economy, but also how superficially competitive they can get when it comes to financial social status.
Introduction to Genre #1:
Genre #1 was a research paper in order to discuss my topic in depth. I think this genre is the most important genre of all because it talks about the topic in detail and supports the topic with lot of figures and data. First it talks about the booming economy of Korea and how it all started. Secondly, it tells the reader about the strict parents in Korea overly emphasizing on children’s education. Furthermore, the number of imported or luxury cars has drastically increased. So as you can see in this paper, competition among Koreans are getting stricter and tighter.
Genre #1
It is undeniable that we all want to create wealth and have a higher social status. Having a lot of money does not mean that you belong to the higher social network in many countries. However, in Korea this has become a major problem, in Korean society, the higher wealth chain you belong to, means that you belong in a higher chain in the society. It is apparent that financial wealth of a person can define ones social status in Korea.
Many Koreans have gained higher social status through the accumulation of wealth, during rapid economic growth. Most notable group who quickly gained higher social status through wealth were farmers. Most of farmers took advantage of the economic boom. During the 1960s to early 1970s, the vast land of Gangnam in Seoul now considered downtown of Seoul, was mostly consisted of farming lands. Farmers were low classed people who had difficult time meeting their ends meet(Ratnikas). Worse yet they envied people with higher social status, such as teachers, businessmen, and common salary workers. It wasn’t the seed they planted that made them to climb the social ladder, it was the booming real estate. During 1980’s Gangnam became the hottest spot to invest in(Ratnikas). Many high rise buildings were built and many people were flocking to the area. Their land price all of sudden increased exponentially and considered low classed people became financially secured and some ended up rich. Farmers who once were poor, uneducated, and disrespected now could afford to buy nice apartments, luxury cars, and even private education. In other words, they were able to build a strong foundation of acquiring higher social status.
Now through these economic booms, finally Korea met the time of the 21st century. Many Koreans who became rich over night did not obtain a higher social status, only through wealth. It was their dedication and effort to educate their offspring to help them lead a better life.(Education forum) Many Korean parents are known for zeal for education so that their children can climb the higher part of the social ladder(Education forum).However, without sufficient fund you can not give top quality education to your children. Most of Korean parents spend their money heavily on their children’s education. In Korea, household spending on private education and tutoring accounted for 34.1 percent of the total household budget last year, up from 33.7 percent in 2003 and 32 percent in 2002, the Bank of Korea has found(Lee). Then how can the poor house holds have their children educated. This translates to the notion that people who are richer will get richer and the poor will have a more difficult time becoming richer. Therefore, without having enough money you are less likely to get a higher education and to obtain a higher social status.
Like every other countries, cars has shown to symbolize one’s social status in Korea. In 1960s and 70s owning any car, either domestic or imported meant that you belong to the higher social chain.(Pence) Thanks to the rapid economic development, the middle class were able to have a car in 1980s. During 1990s the competition for showing off their social status got even fiercer. Some privileged showed their social status through buying imported cars, such as Mercedez, BMW, etc.(Pence) The sales of imported cars grew gradually in early 2000s. For instance, cars such as Audi weren’t widely known in Korea back then, and was also called the “Olympic car,” because of its logo. However, now in Korea Audi is 2nd most sold cars, running up to 541 cars per month.(Pence) However, cars in Korea cost 2 to 3 times the amount in America, cars which costs up to $50,000 in America can easily cost up to $100,000 or more. This proves that Koreans are willing to change or trade up to acquire a higher social status. But, cars aren’t the only sources that define one’s social status, Koreans value deeply which region they live in. Koreans usually envy those people living in Gangnam areas, and they want to move in that region for their child’s education and most importantly to show that you also fit in to that social bracket. Therefore, every year Koreans, usually Ajumas(moms, mature Korean female, married women) battle for the specific region in Seoul. This had a real estate market to sky rocket in early 2000s up to now.
(1) "Education Forum Hot Topic #25 Private after-school tuition - a big growth industry." Education Forum Home Page. 5 Oct. 2009 <http://www.educationforum.org
(2) Pence , Gregory . " Growth Continues in Import Car Sales." Seoul times . 5 Oct. 2009 <theseoultimes.com/ST/?url=/ST/db/read.php?idx=3010 >.
(3) Ratnikas, Algis . "Timeline - South Korea." Timelines. 5 Oct. 2009 < http://timelinesdb.com/listevents.php?subjid=131&dayinhist=&date1=-99999999999&date2=99999999999&words=&title=South%20Korea&fromrec=120 >.
(4) Lee, Hyo-Shik . "Education Spending Hits Record High ." Korea times . 30 Sep. 2009 <www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/biz/2008/02/123_19782.html >.
Introduction to Genre #2:
In Genre #2, it helped me to elaborate on my topic in a different way. Doing this topic allowed me to realize how ego-centric we became. I used this Genre to make fun of those selfish rich people as a parody in a newspaper format. It also talks about a poor little student that has to go through rigorous amounts of extra academic school time. I used this example because it demonstrates the lifestyle of majority of Korean students in the 21st century.
Proposal for Genre #2:
For Genre #2 I want to do a Journal entry or a diary to explain the daily luxury lives of Gangnam people. Also, for backup Genre #2, I think I might make a news paper article concerning this topic, by putting all the sources together and writing in my own words, a news paper article. However, I am most likely to stick with the Newspaper.
Genre #2
For this Genre I have decided to do a
Newspaper article relating to my Topic.
It is composed of 785 words.
Introduction to Genre #3
In Genre #3, I wanted to really open my imagination and think how I can deliver my message to the readers in a more technical way, and I thought what could be easier than making a movie about this topic. However, making just a movie won't make the readers really understand the topic, so I made an interview video of real people, speaking the truths. I also asked a real Korean american pedestrian to help me out with the interview and it was a grand success. My friends also helped me out to really emphasize the details in the video. I liked this Genre the most, because I could really take over and make something with my own imaginations and my own ideas.
Genre #3 proposal
For Genre #3, I have decided to conduct interviews regarding the relations between money and social status. I have noticed this topic can't be better be explained by anyone other than the Koreans themselves, so I am going to roam around the streets and ask people, and also ask close Korean relatives or friends for information. I think the interview will give a better understanding to the readers, because this topic is concerned with real life situations.
MGP @ Yahoo! Video
Epilogue:
1. What I have learned from this project:
The main thing I have learned from this project is that people in Korea are active everyday to improve the economic boom is the global issues today. And also Korea is in top 5 in the world's leading economic countries.
2. How my perspective have changed on my topic?
My perspective have not changed about my topic, I still view my topic exactly the same as I did when I started this project, but one perspective that I have changed on my topic is that not only Korea use financial wealth to define social status. Most east asian countries are like that.
3. What I hope people might have learned by reading my project:
I hope people realize how Koreans have suffered a lot through history by colonization, and isolation from the world. However, Korea stood up and in less than 40 years, improved itself to be the world's leading economic countries.